Times Have Changed
by Aleatoire
Summary: Edward is completely miserable. He’s alone, he hates himself, and he’s frustrated. Just when it seems a miracle has saved him, it turns his world upside down. An AU.
1. Edward will be Edward

**Aleatoire's started another story… Enjoy! **

**Edward POV:**

All my other thoughts escaping me, my mind now strayed back, almost pathetically, to thoughts and memories long past, all filled with _her_: her scent, her touch, her kiss, her laugh. The memories seemed to suddenly wash over my whole body, leaving me almost breathless and reminiscent of all those years ago, thoughts I should have pushed out of my brain entirely when I'd had the chance, like when I had been angry at myself for leaving her, instead of depressed. But now, as I lay there on my expansive leather sofa, thinking only about her, I wondered how in the world I could have mustered up the strength to leave her, because judging by these memories, nothing had gone wrong. But then I remembered:

"Bella!" I had screamed without restraint then; she had been dying that night. Emmett had fought to keep me back as the scent of her tantalizing blood had filled the white interiors of our home, battling with my mind to win over my body.

Carlisle had tended to her, but still she had screamed. "Ed-Edward!" I had hated hearing her cry out like that, especially when it was me she called for, yet I couldn't go. I couldn't comfort her, or keep her safe. I had failed. I had allowed Emmett to drag me out the kitchen door, disgusted at my monstrous instincts.

She had only tripped while carrying a glass bowl of salad and fallen into one of Esme's flower arrangements! The fall had caused there to be a cut into one of her main arteries, the one on her wrist. She had been dying, and all from a silly little fall… A fall that had turned me and my siblings into terrible fiends, even Esme! If Alice hadn't been able to drag Jasper away… Or if Emmett hadn't been able to drag both himself and me away… Carlisle had stopped the bleeding, I knew, but she had had to go to the hospital to be given a little bit of a blood transfusion regardless. While she had been in the hospital, I'd gone to visit her, to tell her goodbye.

"Bella?" I had whispered as I had taken a seat beside her on the hospital bed the next morning. Her eyes had fluttered open, startled by the sudden noise.

"Edward," she'd breathed, relief flooding her voice as she'd struggled to sit up. She'd sprained her ankle and cracked a rib as well, not to mention the numerous cuts and bruises all over her body aside from the large incision. She'd reached up to touch my perfect marble face, but I'd grabbed her hands and took them in my own.

"Bella, we're leaving," I'd told her, and tears had instantly found their way into her eyes. "We can't – I can't – it's not safe for us to be around you Bella. You almost _died_. All because of such a silly little trip! If Jasper hadn't been run out by Alice, if _I_ hadn't been able to control myself for even a second, you would be dead." I had rubbed the back of her hand with my thumb, but she'd pulled herself out of my grip.

"Edward," she'd said my name sternly, and I'd glanced up into her eyes in surprise. "You can 'if' yourself to death, but _nothing_ happened. And now that we know that, next time you guys can handle yourselves, right?"

Her attempt at reason had been funny to me at the time, but now I just found it sickeningly ironic. "Bella, Bella, Bella, if nothing happened this time, what about the next? What if it's not just nothing? Bella, I cannot risk your life again. I want you to live your life, unburdened by having to watch what you do, just so _my family_ doesn't attack you. You deserve so much better than having to constantly watch your back your whole life. You deserve better, than me… I'm a monster Bella, will you ever see that?" I had sighed loudly then, and her heart had stuttered, causing the machine registering its beats to skip a few. "I can't wait around and wait for you to realize that maybe I am something to avoid. I _know_ I am, so I have to leave. It's what's best for you; I love you too much to have to endure watching you suffer because of my _own family_."

Tears had rolled down her cheeks then, and she'd whispered fervently, "No. No, no, no, no. Edward, I need you. I would die _without_ you, not _with_ you. You have it backwards… Please don't go…" She'd choked on her words then, and I'd taken that as the opportunity to say my last goodbye.

"Goodbye Bella Swan," I'd taken her sweating, tear-streaked face in my icy cold palm, and whispered, "I will always love you" before pressing my marble hard lips to her forehead, turning on my heel and vanishing out the door. Carlisle had made sure no one was in the same room as her, and so I'd been able to depart at vampire speed. I'd left her there in the hospital, fragile, broken and alone.

Still, it had been over a hundred years ago. She was probably dead now. Hopefully she'd lived a long and happy life, without any danger from vampires. I'd checked on her from time to time, when the pain had been too much to stand. She'd seemed happy enough. Her relationship with that Jacob Black child had seemed to be progressing well, as much as I disliked that fact. I had sworn to leave her alone, and that I did. That was what I had promised her, and I'd stuck to it. She was gone now, and there was no point in reopening old, dead wounds. It would only make me feel even more dejected than I already was.

I sighed with fervency before pushing myself up off the couch. I walked down our stairway with deliberate human slowness, feeling my own emotions bouncing back at me through Jasper. The whole family was feeling a little down because of the public outlet. In truth, we'd been a little down for over a century now.

_Edward you're making me cry. _ Emmett sat on the living room couch with his arms crossed, as if he were trying to hold his infallible frame together, Rosalie huddled beside him. She'd been sympathetic to the loss of…_her_ as well, even though she'd been unbelievably jealous when she'd still been around.

"Very funny Emmett," I muttered as I took a seat at my piano, even though I knew he was being sincere.

I began playing the most depressing song I knew, one I'd written after I'd left her, causing Esme to begin dry-sobbing while upstairs doing the laundry.

We truly were the living dead now. She had brought so much _life_ o this family, made us see so many things we'd never thought of before, made us remember _why_ we revered human life. And what she'd made _me_ feel… Never in my entire existence did a person evoke such emotions in me. Yet I'd let her go willingly, and now here I sat, a mourning mess, even all these years later. And I thought it had been a good idea at the time…

I broke off the slow, sad song abruptly and ran out the back door. I needed to hit something.

I ran through the cruel December night of the Arctic, looking for any prey I could sink my teeth into. I found a pack of wolves in Denali National Park, far away from any sort of civilization at this time of the year. As I drained five before running on, I couldn't help but think how appropriate this barren land was for us vampires to live. Cold, cruel, dark and heartless, just like us. Not like her…her warm, blushing cheeks and soft fragile skin…so human; so _alive_.

I ran my way up Mt. McKinley, reaching the highest peak in America in little more than seconds. As I stood there surveying the snow ridden wasteland, seeing not a thing but for the frost and cold, I screamed. I screamed until all the air in my lungs had expelled, but it didn't help my head. I could still see her in my mind's eye: her long, straight, luscious mahogany hair; her vibrant, intense chocolate brown eyes; her pale, flawless cheeks with just the hint of a blush. I missed seeing her angry, I missed seeing her happy; I missed kissing her, having my lips move in sync with hers, feeling the soft warmness of those lips mold to the stony harshness of my own. I threw myself backwards into the snow and sighed.

Suddenly I heard someone approaching, but their thoughts were well blocked. The barrier soon went down and they thought, _Feeling a teeny bit angry, Edward? Perhaps I can help brighten the mood…_ Of course, it had to be Tanya. I doubted anything she had to offer would 'brighten my mood.'

"You look so sad dear, are you okay?" A mass of strawberry blonde hair lay down beside me, and she placed her left hand on my chest and stroked it slowly.

"Don't ask," I retorted before thinking of something. I grabbed her far shoulder and pulled her on top of me, demanding, "Distract me, please."

She understood, grinned, and quickly complied. One might call it an insult to Bella's memory for me to be kissing Tanya, of all people, but I'd already hurt Bella once before, and now she was dead. It couldn't affect her. Nothing except time could do that now, as it had every second of her life, her whole life. Just like I had wanted…

"Tanya, distract me _more_ please," I growled as I undid my leather belt. I was still thinking about Bella. Perhaps because I'd kissed Bella before… Therefore I needed something she'd never done to me… Tanya took the hint of the undone belt and sidled down to my waist as she undid the rest of my pants.

"Edward…?" She asked hesitantly as she froze at my boxers, but the look in her eyes was triumphant. I sighed in defeat and pure apathy.

"Just _do_ it, Tanya, please." _You know you want to._ I nearly smirked but stopped myself, instead choosing to stroke her cheek with one finger before letting her tear the front of my boxers open with her teeth.

Despite my inner turmoil over what Tanya was about to do, apparently my body still reacted like it was supposed to. Tanya did what she was supposed to as well, and I threw my head back into the cold, wet snow as I growled in satisfaction. I had shed my gentlemanly nature when I'd left _her_, and it had never returned…

"God damn it," I swore as my thoughts went back to exactly where I hadn't wanted them to go. Maybe it was because _I_ needed to distract myself with something... Tanya _was_ only wearing a skirt… No. That was going too far. I would become too involved. It would only get awkward later…

_Edward! Oh Edward, wait till you hear this…_ Alice's mental voice was jubilant, but she sounded angry when she spoke aloud. "Tanya! Stop doing that right now! Shock soon replaced her anger as she took in my glare.

"Oh, I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?" She raised an eyebrow skeptically as Tanya redid my pants and stood up.

"Its fine Alice," I shrugged as I rose.

"Well… see ya later Edward," Tanya winked at me before running away from us.

As soon as she was gone, Alice elbowed me in the ribs. "Edward, you shouldn't lead her on like that…"

"Oh, like she doesn't do the exact same thing to all those men!" I retorted, turning away from my sister. "And why do you care?"

"Because…" she bounced around me until she stood facing me once more, "I had a vision!"

"You have those incessantly-,"

"A vision of Bella!" She clapped her hands and grinned widely while replaying it for me in her head: just Bella, smiling, her eyes closed. Then, just as she opened them, the vision ended.

"Alice, you're lying," I growled, hating myself for what I'd just done with Tanya, and not wanting to get my hopes up. She could have used one of her old memories of Bella to fool me…to get me to stop fooling around with Tanya. "Bella is _dead_. Now stop trying to interfere in my life!" I shouted at her. Alice. My little pixie sister, the other freak in the family. "Look, just get over her, okay?"

"I-Edward, I'm…sorry," she whispered, her eyes full of hurt as she lowered her gaze to stare at the snow.

"I need to be alone right now," I muttered, and took off, not being able to take it. Thank God Jasper was nowhere nearby. I ran for miles, not really caring where I ended up. I should be burning in Hell for all I had done. Instead I ran through forests, across tundra, and skirted through the outskirts of towns. I ran for hours, and ended up stopping somewhere outside Juneau.

I fell backwards against the damp snow and huffed, wishing – not for the first time – that my memory could be erased. Or that I had died like I had been supposed to in Chicago, all those years ago. Then I wouldn't be causing anyone harm right now.

Like Tanya. I really shouldn't have let her do that. I had no romantic feelings for her whatsoever. I had just needed a distraction. It was wrong to lead her on, but at least she'd gotten some of her repressed feelings out. It was as much as I would ever allow, so in a sense she was lucky to have even had the chance. I was still disgusted at myself for allowing it to happen though. It was wrong and I knew it. I'd have to apologize, and let her know that our relationship had to remain platonic. I sighed. If I could get headaches, that would mean a migraine right there.

I'd also hurt Alice tonight. I knew I'd upset her, and I regretted it now. She just wanted me to be happy again. Well I couldn't do that. I'd abolished my own happiness a long time ago. She really had meant well, but I just couldn't see how what she'd shown me could be possible… I brought the image up into my head again, deciding to give my sister's vision a chance.

There Bella was, smiling, her eyes closed in perfect contentedness, until the vision faded to black, just as her eyes began to open… So, for curiosity's sake I'd say she _did_ see Bella, but _where_ had she seen her? I looked at the vision again, this time scrutinizing the background instead of Bella's captivating face. It was dark, and…snowing. It was snowing in the vision. As if by magic, snow began falling around my spread-eagled body.

Suddenly I smelled freesia dancing through the breeze and I sighed. As if I needed any more reminders of _her_ when I could see her face so clearly in my head regardless…

Then I heard it: the soft crunch of boots on snow, walking towards where I lay. I hastened to get into a sitting position. The scent of freesia seemed to get stronger as the crunching got closer, but it didn't make my throat burn as it had before. I whipped my head around, curious, as I couldn't hear the person's thoughts…Which made me remember Alice's vision. It just _couldn't_ be possible though.

I stood as I turned, and found myself facing a purely beautiful vampire with thirsty black eyes, ringed by sunken purple shadows. Even with these bruise-like marks she was stunning: her hair was a brilliant, lustrous mahogany, and her heart-shaped face was pale as the moon which hung over us now. She had a hint of a smile playing on her lips as she looked me over, and then she spoke.

"Well, well, hello there Edward." She flipped her waist long hair over her shoulder and I caught the smell of strawberries.

"Bella?" I asked in disbelief, my mouth staying open in shock.

**I really shouldn't be starting new stuff… oh well! This chapter was very typically Edward, no? I am attempting to make this my longest fic ever, so it's a challenge for me. I shall try!**

**Review please I would totally appreciate your feedback about this story!**

**- Reese**


	2. You're a Monster

**Hope you enjoy! Please review, and let me know how it goes…**

**Recap**: **"Bella?" I asked in disbelief, my mouth staying open in shock.**

**Edward POV:**

"Mmm, your voice is lovely as ever, but then again, I expected nothing less. After all, your beauty will _never_ deteriorate." She gazed at me almost lazily, as if she was looking past me, but her voice was full of scorn.

"Bella…are you…_mad_ at me?" I hated hearing her bell-like voice marred by anger. I took a step towards her, and she hissed at me, her hair appearing liquid in the wind.

"Really Edward, are you that _dense_? I'd expect this from Emmett, but not you," she crossed her arms and positively glared.

Ah, of course. She was angry I'd left her. "But…you're not dead," I whispered. "You were supposed to die…" Realizing how that must have sounded, I stepped closer to her still and reached out to her.

What I was least expecting was an attack. "So I _was_ supposed to die then? So you and your fake family could protect your perfect backsides? So I'd no longer be a liability?" She narrowed her eyes in sheer malice, and growled as she pinned me down. "Well, as much as a shock to you as it is, I'm not dead, and I could rip your throat out in a matter of seconds. In fact," she pondered as I lay frozen and she stared at my exposed neck, "I might do so right _now_-,"

"Now, now Bella, I thought I told you not to kill him yet," a male's voice broke through my shocked state of mind and brought Bella to her feet, allowing me to stand hastily as well.

"Mark, I told you not to follow me," she sighed and dusted snow off her slim legs, bared in places by slashed holes in her dark washed jeans.

"Which is exactly why I did," the black haired male wrapped his arm around her shoulders and chuckled as I growled. "I knew you'd want to dispose of _that_," – he pointed to me – "sooner rather than later."

"Sometimes I hate you," she told him, but the look in her eyes told a different story.

That hit me somewhere right around where my dead heart was located, and I ended up yelling. "Bella, how could you?" Pain filled my eyes and she smiled malevolently as she watched me fall apart.

"Ask yourself that before you ask me, you monster," she spat, throwing – in my opinion – the ultimate insult at me. She _did_ think I was a monster.

"But Bella," I protested, trying to ease my pain, "You're a vampire too!"

"Yeah, she's a goddamn good one, unlike you, you lowlife," Mark supplied, and I stared at him with unseeing eyes. Every time I'd told her that I was something to be feared and repulsed by, and she'd told me that it would never matter, was flashing before my eyes.

"You've changed," I whispered, attempting to make her feel sorry, "I loved you, no matter what. I still do."

"Get with the times, Edward Cullen," she told me with no remorse in her voice. "They've changed too. It's you who's stayed the same: old-fashioned, prudent, and _boring_. Mark, I'm tired of looking at him, and I'm thirsty. Let's hunt."

"Fine with me," he replied, releasing his hold on her shoulders and opting to take her hand instead as they began to turn away from me. "Where did you want to hit tonight?"

"I was thinking we could just head on up to Fairbanks – easy pickings there at the University." She laughed coldly and I stared after her black tank-top clad back as her and Mark ran away from me, stunned.

I was so shocked that the full impact of her words didn't sink in until I was on my way home. …_at the University_…surely she'd not meant animals, unless they were going for someone's pet cat. What color had her eyes been? Black with thirst… But Mark's…Mark's had been…_red._ He flashed through my mind repeatedly, grinning evilly as he slung his arm around Bella, almost like a nightmare I couldn't forget. Why hadn't I noticed it before? _Because you were too busy being jealous, that's why_, I told myself, shaking my head as I ran through the driving snow. The sun was due to come up in a few hours now, but it would be cloudy today – no sparkling for me.

Humans: they were hunting humans. How could Bella do that? To herself? To _me_? Sweet, innocent, caring Bella… If I hadn't seen her with my own eyes, or heard her with my own ears, I wouldn't have believed it at all. I needed to speak to Carlisle about this, and sooner rather than later. Oh but it would break poor Esme's heart… And Alice, well it would mean the complete ruin of Alice's forever jovial air, tattered as it was already by Bella's absence.

As I ran towards our house, I replayed her attack in my mind: she was clearly much more offensively minded than she used to be. But still, as I replayed the scene of her on top of me, holding me down, I couldn't help but feel the colossal attraction towards her I had always felt. True, she had been growling and angry, but my body reacted as if she were kissing me, or looking at me affectionately. My breathing sped up like a human's did, and my eyes felt as if they were staring deep into her liquid coal ones alone. Did she not feel that anymore? Did Mark fill the void my absence had left for her, while I was left with no one to fill mine? Was I just incredibly sexually repressed, just as Emmett always teased me to be? Still, Tanya had done _nothing_ for me at all, and yet Bella had merely looked at me as if I was a piece of garbage and I still felt a gravitational pull towards her. Clearly, I hadn't yet moved on, and she had. I _had_ been right when I'd said I loved her more, since apparently she no longer returned the sentiment.

I could hear all my family's thoughts as I approached our property, shrouded in trees, just as we liked.

_Where is that idiot? Alice came back almost in tears, running off to Jasper…_

_I hope my son isn't doing anything he'll regret later… Alice wouldn't tell me anything, but she looked worried before rushing Jasper up to their room. _

_Ughh I want Jasper back down here so we can play some games! Maybe I can convince Edward to play when he gets back… _

_Oh Edward, where are you? The poor boy needs a hug; he's been through so much… I'll be there whenever he needs me._

I tuned out Jasper and Alice's thoughts hurriedly and smiled at Esme's as I strode through the door. Maybe I did need a hug. She was the first to see me, and, true to her thoughts, held her arms open to receive me.

I gladly obliged, muttering, "Thanks Mom," as I hugged her close, not caring that Emmett was teasing me in his head.

_Oh Edward! I miss her too, truly I do. It's so sad she's gone…_ She pulled back then to look at me and added sternly, "You never should have let her get away, you know."

I scowled at being reprimanded for something I already felt heavily guilty for and sauntered off to my room, wishing for Death to rear its ugly head and strike me down. No such luck was bestowed upon me, and I threw myself onto my black sofa with a loud sigh. The legs of it creaked under the force I had put behind launching myself onto it, and I growled at the poorly made – well for a vampire – furniture.

_Getting angry at inanimate objects now bro? That's a sign of insanity you know. _Emmett's laugh echoed throughout the house and I snarled. Maybe I was insane.

No one knew Bella was still alive except me. Not even Alice knew for sure, though she had been positive she was. I had yelled at her because I believed the opposite, and yet here I was, stunned by the very truth of her vision. I didn't blame Alice for not seeing more, however, now that I knew there was another vampire with her, one we didn't know. He had probably found Bella somewhere and changed her… Alice would never have seen it.

So had Bella found a mate then? I flipped over onto my stomach and pounded the leather with my fist repeatedly, attempting to beat the memories of him with her out of my mind. I must have pounded too hard, as my fist went right through the couch and made a dent in the floor. I roared in indignation, got up off the couch and picked it up with one hand, throwing a window open and chucking it at a snow-covered tree nearby. The couch broke into pieces, and the tree shook violently and threatened to snap. I didn't care.

_Edward! Come down to my office right now please._ Carlisle's office was directly underneath my room, and if he hadn't seen the couch hit the tree, he had most definitely heard it.

I was quickly berated by Esme as well, but I attempted to ignore her as I made my way down the stairs. _Edward Anthony Masen Cullen! No Volvo for a week!_ Great, now I had no way of driving to _nowhere_. I hardly went anywhere nowadays, so what the hell was the point?

"You wanted to see me Carlisle?" I paused in the doorway and leant against the frame idly, attempting to appear calm. Jasper couldn't help me at the moment; I was attempting to block the emotions he was emitting presently.

"Edward, I know you're upset, but the destruction of personal belongings is not going to help," he began, folding his hands across his desk. I could see the broken sofa clearly through the window behind him, and fixed my gaze on that instead of his concerned eyes.

"She isn't dead," I mused, almost to myself. "She's been alive all this time and I never knew…"

_Who? Bella? Surely not…_ "Who is, son?" Snow was covering the broken pieces of my furniture effectively, creating oddly shaped lumps once bits and pieces were fully covered.

"Bella. I didn't believe Alice, but Bella came to see me, and…" …_and she hates me. _My fists clenched against my sides, and I took a glance at Carlisle, who was staring at my foot.

"Edward, your foot…" _That's hardwood cedar he's desecrating…_

Indeed, the sole of my black loafer was creating a loafer-shaped hole in the wooden doorframe, I was pushing on it so hard. Any second now I would fall over…

"Edward!" Carlisle looked shocked that I would lose my balance, and he was over to my side in a second, gripping my arm, but I managed to steady myself before I could do any more damage to the cedar. _Maybe he does have some form of depression…_

"Carlisle, I'm not depressed," I lied. I was torn up inside, to tell the truth.

"Hold on son, let's go back to that point about you not believing Alice," he suggested as he made his way back to the chair behind his desk. I opted to stand in between the two chairs situated in front of the desk, fearing for the furniture. I locked my hands behind my back, scorning my father's perfect vampire recall. "What did Alice run off to tell you?"

I sighed, rocking back and forth on my toes, careful not to touch anything. "She had a vision of Bella. Just Bella's face, with snow in the background. Her eyes were closed…" _Her lustrous hair whipping in the wind, her lips curved perfectly upwards in a smile, calling my own marble lips to them…_ I shook my head to clear it. "I didn't believe her, thinking she had made it up, so she left me to myself, hurt."

_And did Bella…?_ He prompted me silently, leaning forward eagerly, paying perfect attention.

"Show up? Yes, she did. And Carlisle, her eyes were black-," a sharp intake of breath from him startled me, and I stopped talking for a second.

"You mean to say, she was a vampire? And thirsty? How old did she appear?" _Does she still love him…?_ He smiled marginally and I bit my lip with fervency and impatience.

"Yes, she is a vampire. Yes, she was thirsty. She looked…not much older than twenty-five. No, she doesn't love me anymore," I hung my head and swept my hair back from my face, but it only flopped down over my eyes once more anyways. "She has a mate," I announced, and I heard a gasp come from somewhere upstairs, followed by a sob, then a quick distraction from Jasper. From downstairs I heard something snap, and hoped that Emmett wouldn't regret crushing his game controller.

Esme's thoughts were stunned into silence, and Rosalie was mutinous. _There goes your happiness for good, kid. Not like it was looking too good for you lately anyways._

"She also…feeds off of humans," I admitted, my voice a sad whisper.

This time Carlisle did something very out of character: he sank his head down onto his desk slowly, repeating, "No, no, no, no, no," over and over again. His carefully swept back blonde hair fell over his arms onto the book currently open on his desk, covering the words entirely.

A loud yell broke through the silence as Emmett launched himself out the back door, running for the tree my couch had broken against. I watched as he uprooted the spruce with one hand and hurled it into the hazy light of dawn, his face enraged. Rosalie ran out to try and stop his madness, but he quickly evaded her by following the tree into the horizon. She sped after him, growling and cursing as he ran away.

"Edward," Esme appeared in the doorway, her kind face twisted with grief, "How could she…after all that happened…?" _I just can't fathom_ how…

"I know Esme, I know," I went to her and brought her in close, stroking her soft, caramel hair with one hand as Carlisle looked on. She sobbed without tears, gripping my shirt until it nearly ripped with one small hand.

I was surprised Alice hadn't yet cracked, and assumed Jasper was trying to hold her together… "Oh Bella! _My_ Bella, evil! A _monster_!" I flinched. "Oh _however_ could it have happened? _Edward_! I'm blaming you, you _terrible_ person!" Loud crashes and bangs were heard from their room and I caught an image of Jasper from her mind. He was frantically trying to stop her tirade of ripping the sheets to threads, but she was ruthless.

I released Esme and pried her hand off of my shirt gingerly, afraid of causing any damage to my clothing – Alice would surely kill me. Carlisle stood and wrapped his arms around her waist now, and I sank down into one of the chairs I had been so quick to ignore earlier, staring dejectedly at my lap. Could a vampire ever tire? It felt like I was dead on my feet… How ironic.

Suddenly Esme laughed after another loud noise issued from upstairs, and I looked up in surprise. "We're a mess without her," she chuckled to break the sadness of it all, but I hardly saw the humor. I glared at the spot where my sofa was now completely covered, hating myself for ever letting her go.

_I will get her back_, I vowed. If I had to _kill_ that ridiculous mate of hers, if I had to start killing humans again to make her happy… I would have her in my arms once again.

**Oy moy, holy crap I love writing this story. Enjoy! I would also like at least fifteen reviews please! I really need opinions. Did everyone react appropriately? Did I put enough detail in? Is Edward very Edward-y? **

**Reese :)**


	3. He Loves His Volvo Third

**Note: This story will mostly be Edward's POV, but I felt you guys needed to know where Bella stood, her history etc.**

**Bella's POV:**

"Get with the times, Edward Cullen," I spat his full name in hatred, "They've changed too. It's you who's stayed the same: old-fashioned, prudent, and _boring_. Mark, I'm tired of looking at him, and I'm thirsty. Let's hunt." I just wanted to get away from him, so I could stop battling with myself. I wanted to end his life as soon as possible, just as he had ended mine all those years ago.

"Fine with me," he replied, finally taking his arm off of me – only to grab my hand instead. We turned away from Edward, and Mark asked, "Where did you want to hit tonight?"

"I was thinking we could just head on up to Fairbanks – easy pickings there at the University." I laughed frostily in spite of myself, picturing those silly teenagers slumped unconscious in bushes after a night of partying. They were too easy, really. We ran away from Edward and I never looked back. I could only stand looking at him without lunging for a limited amount of time.

He'd hurt me, he really had. And to the point where I'd even gone looking for danger, and found Mark. Instead of seeing the future, he saw pasts. He said he'd had a knack for reading people's reasons and experiences in his human life.

I had been feeling especially reckless one night, and set off for Port Angeles, a town which had recently been plagued by a 'serial killer.' In truth it had just been Mark. I'd left Charlie's house a few years back, but I'd still lived in Forks. So I'd strung my hair up into a ponytail, taken my old Chevy that night, and I'd drove to the town, hoping to find the person – or vampire – responsible for all the killing. Sure enough, I'd found him.

I'd discovered Mark feasting on an elderly man in a dark back alley, and I'd balked in spite of myself. Even in death, the man's eyes had looked…well, shocked and terrified. As the vampire had fed from his jugular, some of the blood running down the dead man's neck had collected on the concrete in swirling pools of crimson, reflecting the vampire's burning red eyes towards me. His back had been to me up until then, and all I'd been able to see of him had been his black hair and black hoodie, but he'd seen me in the puddle. He'd dropped the man hastily and spun around without a second thought, leaving the elderly one to rest in his own blood, not a drop left in his body. His face had been stark white, matching the pallid face of his killer.

"Hello," he'd greeted me with a tilt of his head. Blood had been dripping off his chin and onto his dark clothing, but I didn't turn and run, and he didn't seem to care.

"H-hi," I'd replied shakily, my voice, if not my defensive stance, giving way to my true emotions. I'd expected him to go in for the kill next, or at least tell me I was going to die, but what he'd done next shocked me.

He'd reached forward, took my hand in his own blood drenched one, and smiled courteously down at me. "You seem sad," he'd remarked, tracing designs on my palm and lacing it with dried blood. "You came here purposely to find me." He had almost been talking to himself, and all I could do had been to stare down at my hand in wonder. "Someone left you long ago, and you see no point in living. Isabella. You want me to grant you death, so you can stop feeling the pain he's made you endure. Yet…what's this? You still love him… I can see him as clearly as you once did… His pale face, his golden eyes, his perfectly tousled bronze hair… He was a vampire too, wasn't he? And he wanted you… oh so badly. So he left you, claiming he didn't love you any longer…" I'd flinched as I recalled the memories he was speaking of. He'd felt me tremble. "No need to be afraid, dear, I won't kill you. Judging from this, I believe that what you need is some help. And I _have_ been looking for a potential…_partner_." His crimson eyes had glittered in anticipation, and I'd bit my lip. He could have killed me in a second. I would have preferred it. But his eyes had been so mystifying, so _eager_, that I'd found myself agreeing to his offer.

"What exactly," I'd asked for clarification, "Are you planning to do to me?" I'd already known the answer, of course.

He'd laughed softly and intertwined his fingers with my own. He'd raised our interlocked hands and grinned. "Well Isabella, I'm going to turn you, of course. You already know how that one works… And you've wanted immortality for so long…"

"How do you know?" I'd asked, defiant even in the face of my own figurative death.

"I can read your past, darling, and all the reasons you've put behind your decisions. I know why you've come to find me, I know why you said you loved Edward, and I know why you still love him. As much as he hurt you, you're still willing to have a place in your heart for a dead man, someone who didn't give a damn about you in the first place." His eyes had turned sympathetic, but I'd already wrenched my hand from his grasp. He'd let me, clearly stunned.

"Stop it!" I'd begun sobbing, and I'd turned away from him to allow the tears to fall. Later I regretted that decision, as he'd taken the golden opportunity to strike, sinking his already bloody teeth into my exposed neck. I'd cried out in pain, but he'd quickly muffled my screams with his hand, and then I had blacked out.

Thee days later I'd been changed and Mark had encouraged me to go and hunt. I'd shot off into the forest at first, but he'd convinced me differently.

"Now, now, Isabella, _Edward_ may have believed in that, but not I. We are true vampires, unlike him. Now go find a poor soul to drain, before you faint." At first I'd had my principles, but I'd released all of my morals and ethics as I began to realize my true potential.

They were humans, they multiplied, and one of their purposes was to quench our thirst, us who would never die. Edward had really been stupid to think that human's lives were so precious. There would always be humans in the world. He should have killed me when he'd wanted to, instead of putting me through all the pain. I was a vampire now though; that pain no longer inflicted wounds on me. At least, not as visibly. I still felt the loss of him every day, but now I knew where I could direct my frustration, anger, and sadness.

Via revenge. He had hurt me terribly, so I would unleash it threefold on him. I had it all planned out, and I had been scheming with Mark for over a century now. It would start with little things, like the smashing of his Volvo or his piano, and would eventually end in his death. The latter had been Mark's idea, but somehow I didn't think that would hurt him, as much as I did want him to die. Death was painless though, and unfeeling. I wanted him to _feel_ everything I had felt when he'd destroyed my happiness. Maybe I would tear one of his limbs off… That was sure to be painful.

"Contemplating vendetta again, my dear?" Ah, how Mark knew me so well.

"Of course," I sighed as I tossed my last kill into the bush he had come from. Let the students be scared for a while. We would never come back here.

"Well, what would you have me do to help you exact that revenge, my queen?" I sighed again, but added a giggle. Mark thought we were mates… I was not ready to give myself to him, or anyone else for that matter. It just felt…so _wrong_. We'd kissed once, but I'd shoved him away. He hadn't talked to me for a year. It had been hard living on my own, but he had come back. I'd forgiven him, and we'd come to an understanding: we never got physical. He was still convinced I was his mate though.

"Let's go…wreak havoc on the thing he loves third most in this world," I suggested, grinning as I spoke. He loved his Volvo third, his music second, and…well, me first.

"I'm assuming that would be his precious Volvo, is that correct?" Mark took my hand and ushered me away from the University. I laughed.

"I've taught you well," I joked, for a second considering myself a Cullen expert.

"Ah, that you have dear, but I have made you into the most beautiful princess of revenge there ever was," he remarked as we ran back into the harsh winter wilderness.

I laughed darkly this time, not believing him. I was hardly the best… But Victoria, Victoria was up there. I didn't voice this aloud of course, because Mark had never seen her as I had. He'd never felt the fear I'd felt at losing any of my family to her…

He had met her once though, and I had been with him. She'd recognized me instantly, but her thoughts of revenge, boiling in her venom-filled veins ever since James had been destroyed by Edward and the other Cullen men, soon went to waste as she attacked viciously, like a predatory cat.

She had been almost too easy for me, as she'd been thirsty – our meeting had interrupted her hunting – and I had still been a newborn, not quite out of my first year. Mark had kept me thankfully sane that first year, but at the time we'd met Victoria I'd just fed almost gluttonously, meaning I'd had superior strength against the wild orange-haired vampire. It had been sheer coincidence, running into her, or so I'd thought at the time.

After I'd destroyed her Mark had told me what he'd done to set it all up. He'd seen Victoria in my past, and seen how intent she'd been on killing me that he'd purposely followed her scent somewhere down in Buffalo. Before meeting with her he'd encouraged me to feed, and feed more. I'd just thought he was being nice, giving me his kills and having me drain them. I had been, after all, thirstier than him at the time. In truth he'd been preparing me for battle. I made sure to thank him, and he'd said I'd done beautifully, finishing her off. He'd even mentioned Edward's failure to kill her, making it sound as if I was better than him. I believed it.

By this time we had made our way successfully into the forest encroaching on the Cullen property. We could hear them all, inside the house. I could even hear the creaking and groaning of a bed clearly not designed for vampires, along with giggling I instantly recognized as Alice's, accompanied by masculine laughter and moans. I took that to be Jasper, and knew if I got any closer to their room, I would undoubtedly be subject to their lust.

Suddenly I heard another creak, coming from the south side of the house, followed by an angry growl. That would have been Edward, and I wondered what had upset him. Not that I minded his frustrations. Whatever it was, it seemed to make Emmett laugh, and the result of his mirth shook the trees around us dangerously.

We dare not speak, lest we be found, but Mark raised an eyebrow at the noise and I shrugged. They were being Cullens. A noise sounding much like thunder going straight through something broke the silence left after Emmett's outburst, and Mark elbowed me in the ribs. In our crouched position behind a snow bank, I was surprised he could manage it. I looked up at him and he jerked his head to the left, where the garage was.

We began to make our way over stealthily, taking care to make as little noise as possible. On our way over, a black couch suddenly flew out of a window and into a tree not fifty yards away from us. We were still hidden behind the same snow bank, which seemed to snake its way around the property… Of course, it was the fence, covered with snow until it was nearly unrecognizable.

I stopped Mark with my hand and we watched the window the couch had come out of. The sofa had broken into pieces upon impact, and the tree was about to break, but the vampire responsible hardly seemed to care. Whoever it was whipped themselves away from the window so fast that even with my vampiric eyes, I could only see a flash of bronze. Of course it would have been Edward. At least he wasn't beating up Emmett or anything… I shook my head violently, causing Mark to jump slightly. Why did I care if he picked a fight with Emmett? I would have loved to watch him get pummeled…Wouldn't I?

Mark grabbed my hand and pulled me along, still in a crouch, and I hesitantly complied. We reached the back of the garage without incident, but the trouble would be getting inside. I knew Rose was inside the house, as I could hear her talking to Emmett softly. I didn't want to create a Bella sized hole in the back of the building, as that would cause too much suspicion. Locks weren't a problem, of course, but noise would be.

Mark poked my shoulder, and attempted to sign things once he had my attention. He pointed at his chest, indicating himself, and then pointed towards the front of the garage. He then mimed opening a door. I told him to go by waving my hand in the direction he'd pointed to. He stood and waited for me, but I crossed my arms and sank myself deeper into the snow sticking to the back of the garage.

I would wait for him to figure it out. As I waited, I picked out a great many noises from the large house. One was Emmett's video game and the random noises he was yelling at it, followed by Rose's occasional laugh or scoff. Another was Esme humming a slow, almost depressing tune to herself. I skimmed over Jasper and Alice's room, knowing what was going on. I stopped instead when I heard Edward's voice.

"Bella. I didn't believe Alice, but Bella came to see me, and…" He broke off suddenly. He didn't believe Alice when she had said what?

Carlisle spoke next, but what he said was completely random – at least to me. "Edward, your foot…" Actually, if I listened closer, I could hear the soft munch of cedar… He was destroying something else now? "Edward!" Carlisle suddenly cried out, and I heard a loud footfall and the grabbing of cloth.

"Carlisle, I'm not depressed," Edward suddenly spoke up after a seconds' silence, and I struggled for a second, until I remembered that he must have read his father's thoughts.

"Hold on son, let's go back to that point about you not believing Alice," Carlisle suggested amiably, and I heard his footsteps, followed by silence. Edward's footsteps moved a bit, and then stopped. "What did Alice run off to tell you?" Yes, what had Alice told him that he hadn't believed? From my experience with Alice, it was wise to put stock in what she said.

"She had a vision of Bella. Just Bella's face, with snow in the background. Her eyes were closed…" She had? She could still see me? I heard the shaking of hair, and assumed it to be Edward. "I didn't believe her, thinking she had made it up, so she left me to myself, hurt." Why would Alice make that up…? Unless…she missed me superbly. So that was why she was so busy with Jasper at the moment. Trying to forget me, and that Edward had insulted her power by not putting faith in it.

The creak of leather made me imagine Carlisle leaning forward in his expensive chair. It was quiet for a second.

Edward answered his father's thoughts again, and I nearly groaned in frustration. "Show up? Yes, she did. And Carlisle, her eyes were black-," a gasp, most likely from Carlisle, cut Edward's voice off.

"You mean to say, she was a vampire? And thirsty? How old did she appear?" Running through the proper questions, that was Carlisle.

"Yes, she is a vampire. Yes, she was thirsty. She looked…not much older than twenty-five." Well actually, I was twenty-three, thank you very much. What he said next startled me, and I couldn't be sure if it was by his own admission or a response to a silent question. "No, she doesn't love me anymore," he sounded genuinely sad, and for a moment I saw things his way… But no, it was over. I felt nothing. "She has a mate," he let out, and that caused a lot of commotion inside the house. There was a gasp from the third floor and a sob quickly cut off by another gasp, but this time it was a gasp of shock and love. On the ground floor there came a large snap, and I imagined that Emmett had hurt his video game in some way.

So he had thought Mark my mate. I might be able to play that to my advantage, actually… I would save that for later. It was silent for a few more tenuous seconds, until Mark darted around the side of the building. No doubt he'd used the loud noises from the house to his advantage.

As I sprinted into the garage behind Chris, I heard Edward speak again, but his voice was so low I barely caught it. "She also…feeds off of humans."

I heard the mantra "No, no, no, no, no" but couldn't believe who it was coming from: Carlisle. I heard his body slump forward and I froze after closing the small garage door. Actually…I wasn't surprised at all. He'd always felt the highest regard for human life. Everything he'd ever done to stave off his bloodlust had been largely ignored by me.

I heard a door open next, and was afraid they'd found us. Soon after, a raucous yell broke out into the air, and I almost sighed my relief. It had just been Emmett. His footsteps carried over to the right of the garage, and the sound of a tree being ripped out of the earth could be heard next, drowning out all else for a second. A high-pitched whistling echoed throughout soon after, and I could only guess that he'd thrown the tree he'd uprooted. Softer footfalls could be heard coming from the house, followed by the sound of Emmett's running past the garage and into the forest. Rose followed, yelling obscenities, along with the occasional snarl.

"Edward, how could she…after all that happened…?" I could barely hear Esme, she sounded so downcast. She was questioning _my_ actions, I knew.

"I know Esme, I know," Edward comforted her. She dry-sobbed into his body, judging by the muffled sound, and suddenly the sound of cloth being strained was heard. She must be pulling at his shirt.

I jumped when I heard Alice scream, and wondered how on earth such a tiny little thing could have such a big voice. "Oh Bella! _My_ Bella, evil!" Her Bella? I knew we had been friends, but to call me _hers_? "A _monster_!" Was that how they all thought of me? Humans _did_ fear me, but I wasn't some mindless killer. "Oh _however_ could it have happened? _Edward_! I'm blaming you, you _terrible_ person!" I heard crashes, bangs and rips issuing from the large house, and assumed Alice was making a kafuffle. I was mesmerized. She blamed Edward? I never would have thought her to be that reasonable. I agreed with her, of course, it was all his fault, which was why I was now in their garage, about to mess up his Volvo.

I turned back to my work, ignoring all the little indications of movement coming from the Cullens. Mark had successfully picked the lock on the driver's door and was now standing by the open door, awaiting instruction. I would do it myself, I had decided that. Mark had gotten us in; he'd done his part. I ushered him aside and pointed at myself, telling him I would be the one to do it. Luckily I'd been taught a few things about cars… I climbed into the driver's seat.

Suddenly I heard a feminine laugh coming from the house, and I paused while in the middle of attempting to remove the stereo. "We're a mess without her," I heard Esme say, and realized the laugh must have been hers. I could only guess who the 'her' she was referring to was, but one only had to have the mind of Emmett to be sure that it was me. So the entire Cullen family had been in an uproar since I'd been gone…and Alice blamed Edward for it. Maybe the rest of them did to.

I received a sudden poke from Mark, who gestured that I should keep going. But I couldn't do it. This was far too juvenile, and what would it result in? Edward would get a little angry, perhaps break some more material objects, or head off by himself to brood… I'd leave this sort of prank to Emmett's childlike mind. I shook my head at Mark, and he looked at me as if I'd gone insane.

I had a better idea. Something that would split Edward's soul apart, if indeed he still had one in him. I would give him happiness, then take it away… Using his own beliefs to my advantage.

I got out of the car and strode over to the windshield, where I took up my fingernail and began carving words into the glass. It made very little noise, just a lot of dust.

_E, _I wrote as Mark watched in surprise, _I miss you. I'm so sorry for acting how I did towards you when we last met. I know you were only trying to protect me when you left. To make it up to you, I want you to meet me north of Denali National Park on New Years Eve, at midnight. I'm sure you'll be able to follow my scent there. I'll be alone, and waiting. B._

Mark smiled in compliance and I almost laughed. This would be too perfect, and almost too easy. It was the twenty-ninth now, so I had almost three more days to mess with his life minimally. All I had to do now was decide that it was all genuine…and no one would interfere. There was a small cabin at the location I'd mentioned, one that Mark and I hadn't hesitated to use before. It was abandoned, just as I had been.

**Woah. What's she gonna do??? Well all I can say is, it's not gonna be pretty. **

**Good chapter? Is Bella a little more justified? I hope I did okay with that. Review please, let me know!**

**- Reese**


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